Chasing the Stars || Amelia Shepherd

chapter two

amelia's pov:

i rested my hand on the distressed girl's shoulder, hoping to give her the sense of comfort she was so desperately craving.

as i did so, she flinched again and i felt a prominent shoulder blade poking out from her white coat. too prominent.

"come get up on the bed and let me have a look," i told her gently. i phrased it so that it's not a question to not give her a choice.

she looked up at me, still shaking, considering her options.

i offered my free hand to her. she looked at it for a while as if she was examining it before she finally, she reached out and took it.

she struggled to her feet, and swayed before collapsing.

i managed to catch her before her knees made contact with the floor. "woah there, you're okay. i've got you," i reassured her. she was really light.

i helped her over to one of the beds and gently set her down. "i'm going to roll up your sleeve okay," i told her, hoping she would comply.

she shook her head violently, new tears forming in the corners of her eyes. she was avoiding eye contact and biting her lip so hard i was afraid she would break the skin. i looked down and saw that she was roughly scratching at the back of her left hand.

i took her hands in mine but she still refused to look at me. in response i put two fingers under her chin and tilted her head up so that she could see my face.

the fear and distrust in her expression was breaking my heart. she was the star resident. top of her class. how did i not know she was struggling like this? she was showing clear signs of trauma and mental health problems.

"i'm just gonna take a look, okay? i'm not judging you in any way sweetheart."

her face suddenly crumbled and she broke down in tears. i thought it was probably the pet name.

i got onto one knee in front of her to appear less threatening and proceeded to rub the outside of her thigh gently as she cried. this poor girl was so lonely.

she wasn't too close to any of the other residents in her class and as far as i knew there hadn't been any mention of parents visiting or ever calling. i was pretty sure she wasn't in a romantic relationship either.

once her sobs had reduced to light sniffles, i gently tugged at the end of her sleeve, letting her know i was going to pull it up. her breath hitched but she didn't move.

i very slowly rolled her right sleeve up to her elbow, revealing deep cuts all up her forearm. my heart shattered.

"did you do this to yourself evelyn?"

"i'm sorry amelia," her voice was trembling as she pulled her sleeve back down.

"you have nothing to be sorry for, sweetheart," i told her firmly.

she bit her lip again, too exhausted to argue by the looks of her. the bags under her eyes were suddenly very visible to me and she was unusually pale.

"i'm gonna take a look at the other arm, okay?"

"no...you don't need to, it's fine amelia, really," she tried to convince me. i was not buying it.

"i have to sweetheart."

i gently began to pull up her other sleeve. she struggled this time.

"amelia please! please don't!" she choked.

i managed to hold her elbow still as i pulled her sleeve all the way up to reveal a left arm in even worse condition. 

"oh evelyn," i whispered, not loud enough for her to hear. the weight of what this girl was going through began to set in, making my heart ache for her.